MMAjunkie’s 'Knockout of the Month' for April 2014

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMAjunkie takes a look at the best knockouts from April 1-30. Here are the six nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMAjunkie’s “Knockout of the Month” award for April 2014.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice for “Knockout of the Month.”

* * * * *

THE NOMINEES

Holly Holm def. Juliana Werner at Legacy FC 30Holly Holm captured her first MMA championship at Legacy FC 30 when she put Julian Werner down with a head kick in the fifth round. Despite suffering a broken forearm early in the fight, Holm still brutalized Werner with a vicious kicking attack until the fight-ending blow connected clean in the final frame.

Roy Nelson def. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC Fight Night 39Roy Nelson’s overhand right may be one of the most predictable offensive attacks in MMA, but somehow “Big Country” continues to find a home for his trademark strike. The latest victim of Nelson’s incredible power was Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, who was put to sleep with the blow in spectacular fashion in the UFC Fight Night 39 main event in Abu Dhabi.

Alexander Volkov def. Siala-Mou Siliga at Bellator 116Alexander Volkov added a spectacular knockout finish to his resume with a first-round head-kick finish of Siala-Mou Siliga at Bellator 116. The Russian didn’t need long to dispatch of “Mighty Mo” as some brief clinch work opened up the striking from a distance. Volkov timed the kick perfectly and rendered Siliga unconscious before he could hit the ground.

K.J. Noons def. Sam Stout at the TUF Nations Finale
In a fight that had all the makings of a three-round slugfest at the TUF Nations Finale, K.J. Noons became the first man to knock out Sam Stout. Not only that, but he needed just 30 seconds to drop Stout with a devastating overhand and finish the Canadian off with a few precise shots on the ground for good measure.

Chris Beal def. Patrick Williams at UFC 172
There have been 13 flying knee finishes in the history of the UFC, but an argument can be made none of those blows landed cleaner than Chris Beal’s brutal connection to the chin of Patrick Williams at UFC 172. After a back-and-forth first round, “The Ultimate Fighter 18″ contestant went airborne in the second round and put Williams’ lights out with a perfectly placed strike.

Danny Castillo def. Charlie Brenneman at UFC 172Danny Castillo displayed his evolving striking skills in December against Edson Barboza. But at UFC 172, he truly turned the corner with the most impressive knockout of his career. Castillo landed a brilliant overhand right on Charlie Brenneman in the second round of their lightweight bout that sent “The Spaniard” crashing the mat in spectacular fashion.

* * * * *

THE WINNER

Chris Beal (9-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) wasn’t even supposed to make his UFC debut at UFC 172, but injuries and several shakeups to the card opened the door for a short-notice bout opposite Patrick Williams (7-4 MMA, 0-1 UFC).

The level and length of preparation certainly wasn’t what Beal wanted for such a crucial moment, however, the end result couldn’t have been more perfect.

Beal knocked Williams out cold with a flying knee in the second round of their bantamweight affair, a finish that MMAjunkie has deemed the best knockout of April.

“I was watching him going to take me down, so I was like, ‘All right, next time he tries to take me down I’m going to catch him,’” Beal told MMAjunkie of the knockout. “I jumped right into it with perfect form and technique. It was the first time I’ve attempted one of those bad boys in a fight and I was ecstatic.”

The flying knee is a high risk, high reward technique to attempt in an MMA fight. If all goes well, the results can be devastating. But if the timing is even slightly off, things could go horribly wrong.

Beal says he thought about Andrei Arlovski’s infamous failed flying knee against Fedor Emelianenko years ago under the now-defunct Affliction banner, but he decided to go for it anyway.

“I was talking to my coach and he said, ‘If you get hit with a good shot, stick to the game plan. If you hit him with a good shot, stick to the game plan. The last thing we need to do is an Arlovski when he fought Fedor and got caught trying to do a flying knee,’” Beal said. “I guess the flying knee stuck in my head because I went for it and luckily it turned out better than Arlovski.”

Of the 13 flying knee knockouts to take place inside the UFC’s octagon, an argument can be made Beal’s landed the most flush of them all. Williams was unconscious before he hit the ground, and while many may have been surprised by the outcome, Beal says it’s all a product of hard work.

“It was by the far the cleanest knockout of my career,” Beal said. “When I talked to Sean Shelby after ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ he said I’m going to need a few fights and some stoppages. Since the TUF show I have two fights and two second-round stoppages. I work hard and this is the outcome.”

Beal is riding high after a knockout that brought him more notoriety than any other fight he’s had. The $50,000 fight-night bonus he received for his efforts doesn’t hurt, either.

While some fighters would let such a highlight reel finish go to their head, the 28-year-old won’t let this moment derail his future.

“I’m kind of still dreaming – I can’t really believe that it happened,” Beal said. “If I want to keep feeling feelings like this then I need to keep working hard. I can’t let this moment overtake me. I had a couple days to enjoy it and now it’s back to work.

“I’m the same person I was before this Saturday except I got a flying knee knockout in the record books. I’ve been working super hard to get to this spot. Not only did I win my fight, but I got a knockout of the night and all the accolades that go with it.”

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.